Her daughter, then in kindergarten, wanted to join a local troop. When Popwell was told there were not enough volunteers for a troop in her area, she accepted the invitation to step up and become a volunteer.

She started her own troop at Central United Methodist Church in Shelby and, since then, the program has expanded greatly. Today at Central UMC, there are four troops with more than 60 girls.

As a child, Popwell remembers participating in the Girl Scouts from the second to the fifth grade. But once she passed fifth grade, she could no longer be a Girl Scout.

“We wanted to be Girl Scouts but we couldn’t because there were no leaders,” said Popwell.

Both she and her daughter experienced the same problem: there were often not enough volunteers for the Girl Scouts. This resulted in girls who wanted to participate being turned away. For that reason, Popwell was inspired to make sure every girl who wanted to be a Girl Scout could.

'We placed 100 percent of the girls'

A few years ago, Popwell realized the number of girls in the Girl Scouts in Cleveland County decreased and that it was almost at a standstill.

“There was no real recruitment,” Popwell said, “Many girls were on a waiting list for a troop.”

So she proposed a new idea for recruitment that she called the Juliette Club, which she named in honor of the founder of the Girl Scouts, Juliette Gordon Low.

The Juliette Club allowed girls to sign up and become Girl Scouts as individuals, without having to be put on a waiting list for a troop. The girls could attend monthly Juliette Club meetings until they could be placed in a troop. Her plan was that recruitment would increase and that parents would get excited and more involved with the program. Her plan worked as 35 girls signed up for the first club and within the first two meetings, two of their mothers began leading troops of their own.

“So last year, we placed 100 percent of the girls,” said Popwell. Susan White also assisted with the Juliette Club meetings and not one girl was turned away.

This year, Popwell decided to adapt another part of the recruitment process: recruitment nights. Parents were taking Scouts paperwork home but not signing their daughters up. Many parents were never heard from again. Under the new process, which incorporates the Juliette Club, volunteers give parents the paperwork, sign the girls up at the event and place them in the Juliette Club.

One such club was started this year in Cleveland County and from that club, two more troops began. In all, 60 girls were placed in troops this year alone. And in the past two years, the number of Girl Scouts in Cleveland County has increased from 200 girls to 300.

Girl Scouts reap benefits

Seeing Cleveland County’s success with recruitment, the other 40 counties in the regional Girl Scouts council decided to model their process after Cleveland County's.

In addition, Popwell now leads all of the volunteers in the Cleveland County Girl Scouts as the service unit manager. This year, she was also nominated for the board of directors for this region’s Girl Scouts council.

Popwell said there are many benefits to being a Girl Scout.

Colleges look favorably upon Girl Scouts who have their Gold Award, and Girl Scouts who join the military automatically increase their rank by a position.

Scholarships are widely available, too. Last year in the 40-county area, $25,000 worth of scholarships were awarded to Girl Scouts, two of them from Cleveland County.

But perhaps some of the greatest benefits of being a Girl Scout are found in the life lessons learned, Popwell said. Scouts gives girls more self esteem, teaches them to make good choices, encourages them to be leaders and teaches them teamwork.

As Popwell said: “The Girl Scouts motto or tagline is ‘To grow girls of courage, confidence and character that will make the world a better place.’”

Making the world a better place is something Popwell and Cleveland County troops are passionate about.

They have participated in a blood donor drive, a canned goods and clothing drive, beautification projects in Kings Mountain and at James Love School in Shelby, Project Linus (which makes blankets for sick children), a DVD drive for the children’s hospital and Christmas ornament projects for the children’s hospital and for veterans. One troop even adopted a soldier.

And their service has not gone unnoticed. In Shelby last year, 12 Girl Scouts won their Bronze Star, four won their Silver Star and two won their Gold Star. The Gold Star is the highest award achievable at the junior level of Girl Scouts.

Goal: Scouts available to every girl

Popwell said she simply wants to provide girls with the opportunity to be a Girl Scout, for the leadership potential, the lessons girls learn, and the close friendships that result. For many girls, the Girl Scouts provides a core group of friends that last for years and the ability to deal with real-world problems they have yet to experience.

“I want these girls to be able to go out into the world and say, ‘Wow, I dealt with this in the Girl Scouts; I can deal with this in the real world,'" she said.

Popwell said she hopes Scout numbers grow so big that the county needs two service units, one for Shelby and one for Kings Mountain. She also hopes to grow the synergy between the Shelby and Kings Mountain groups, while also working more with area homeschool associations. The ultimate goal, though, is still the same as it was four years ago: to never turn anyone away.

“My goal is to have every girl that wants to be a Girl Scout a Girl Scout,” said Popwell.

With her determination and heart for the Scouts, that goal is within reach.

Reach Molly Phipps at 704-669-3339 or mphipps@shelbystar.com.

Interesting Facts about Liz Popwell

-Her cousin is Spanky McFarlane, famous singer from the 1960s and 1970s

-Her family and Scottish heritage are very important to her

-She is a Senior Fellow of the American Leadership Forum, a program in which many past presidents have also participated as Senior Fellows